What ACT360's 90-day exit clause covers, why it's 90 days, what you should be able to judge by then, and the services it doesn't apply to.
When I tell a business owner our Managed IT agreements include a 90-day exit clause, the next question is almost always the same. What’s the catch?
There isn’t one, but there are details worth knowing, and you should know them before you sign anything with us. This article explains what the clause covers, why we picked 90 days, what you should be able to judge by then, and where it doesn’t apply. If you want the bigger picture first, start with our page on managed IT services with no long-term contract.
What Is ACT360’s 90-Day Exit Clause?
The 90-day exit clause is a term in every ACT360 Managed IT agreement. If the service isn’t working for your business within the first 90 days, you can end the agreement without a penalty. It covers Managed IT only, and it exists so you can judge the work before you’re committed.
In plain terms, it’s a trial period with real stakes for us. You get a full onboarding, a named contact and live support from day 1, and if that isn’t what you expected, you’re not stuck.
Why 90 Days and Not 30?
Because 30 days isn’t long enough to see anything meaningful. A properly run onboarding takes 60 to 90 days, and our 90-day onboarding breakdown walks through each phase.
| Period | What happens | What you can judge |
|---|---|---|
| Days 1 to 30 | Assess and Comprehend. Discovery and documentation, nothing moved yet | Whether we actually understand how your business runs |
| Days 31 to 60 | Tailor and Implement. Security baseline, backups, then core systems in priority order | Whether the transition is calm and your team keeps working |
| Days 61 to 90 | Validate and Optimize. Test restores, training and your first business review | Whether we bring you recommendations you didn’t ask for |
A 30-day window would end before the first system moved. A 90-day window ends after you’ve seen the whole transition and sat through a real review. That’s the point at which an honest decision is possible.
What Should You Be Able to Judge by Day 90?
Don’t wait until day 89 to think about it. Here’s what I’d want to see by then if I were in your seat.
- Your named contact knows your systems and your people without being reminded.
- Critical systems moved in phases, with no surprise downtime.
- Backups were restored in a test, not just reported as successful.
- You can see the tools and access we’re using.
- Your staff find it easier to get help than before.
- Your first business review covered outcomes and gave you a short list of next steps.
If 2 or 3 of those are missing, tell us. Most of the time it’s fixable. If it isn’t, that’s what the clause is for.
What Does the Clause Cover, and What Doesn’t It?
The clause is deliberately narrow, and it’s better to be clear about that now.
| Item | Covered by the 90-day exit clause? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| ACT360 Managed IT agreement | Yes | This is what the clause was written for |
| Web design and websites | No | Quoted as a project with its own scope |
| Custom web applications | No | Quoted as a project with its own scope |
| AI automation work | No | Quoted as a project with its own scope |
| Microsoft licences | Separate | They follow Microsoft’s own commitment rules |
| Hardware you’ve bought | Separate | It’s a purchase, and it’s yours |
The licensing line catches people out with every provider, not just us. Under Microsoft’s New Commerce Experience cancellation policy, most subscriptions can only be cancelled for a prorated refund within 7 days of purchase. That’s why we bill licensing separately and go through renewal dates with you before anything is bought.
How Do You Use It?
Talk to your named contact, either me or Jeffrey Bowles, before day 90 and tell us it isn’t working. We’ll want to understand why, because it helps us get better, but we won’t try to argue you out of it.
Leaving cleanly depends on access, and that’s something we set up from day 1. We work with transparent tools and access, and you own everything we build. The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security’s guidance for consumers of managed services recommends that businesses keep control of access and settle data ownership before signing with any provider. We agree, and we’d encourage you to hold every provider to that, including us.
Why Don’t More IT Providers Offer This?
Because it’s uncomfortable. An early exit clause only works if onboarding is careful, communication is clear and the work matches the proposal. A provider that adds one without that discipline will lose clients, and fast.
In the provider agreements we review with Ontario businesses, early exit terms like this are rare. Most rely on a 1 to 3 year term and an exit fee instead. That model isn’t always wrong, and our comparison of flexible-contract vs. locked-in MSPs covers when a longer term can make sense. It’s just not how we want to keep clients.
My view hasn’t changed since we started offering it. Vendors need contracts to keep clients. Partners keep clients by delivering results.
What Happens After the First 90 Days?
The agreement continues on the terms set out in your proposal, which we walk through line by line before you sign. Day-to-day support, monitoring and quarterly business reviews carry on with the same named contact.
If you’re coming from a provider that made leaving expensive, it’s worth reading 5 red flags your IT contract has you locked in and our guide to what it costs to switch IT providers before you give notice. Timing your exit around your current renewal date can save real money.
Final Thought
The 90-day exit clause isn’t a marketing line for us. It’s a promise that changes how we work, because we know every new client is judging us in real time. If we do our job, you’ll never think about it again.
If you’d like to see what an agreement with us would look like for your business, talk to our team or book a free IT Readiness Assessment. Call 705-739-2281 or email [email protected].
